The industry speculates about acquisitions by Obi in Germany

The German DIY industry is speculating about possible acquisitions by the market leader Obi. Concrete indications of this are statements in relation to the inheritance dispute in the Haub family, who the parent company Tengelmann belongs to. Obi needs money, as there are plans "to participate in the upcoming consolidation in the German DIY market," a lawyer for the brothers Georg and Christian Haub is quoted as saying in media reports. There is "a substantial liquidity requirement in all strategic subsidiaries".
The dispute is concerning the inheritance tax to the amount of around EUR 450 mio for Katrin Haub. She is the widow of Karl-Erivan Haub, who disappeared in the Swiss Alps a good two and a half years ago and is now to be declared dead. She requires the Tengelmann group to contribute to the inheritance tax. Karl-Erivan Haub's two brothers reject her demand.